The Hoppy Okapihttps://hoppyokapi.com
Occasional posts about hiking and other stuffThu, 05 May 2016 19:35:10 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://secure.gravatar.com/blavatar/b97eb08b17db2109a237f5a8a56d096c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fs2.wp.com%2Fi%2Fbuttonw-com.pngThe Hoppy Okapihttps://hoppyokapi.com
Pictures from Airplanes: 2014https://hoppyokapi.com/2014/12/26/pictures-from-airplanes-2014/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2014/12/26/pictures-from-airplanes-2014/#respondFri, 26 Dec 2014 23:12:16 +0000http://hoppyokapi.com/?p=2152]]>I spent a lot of time in airplanes in 2014 – several trips to San Diego and San Jose, plus State College, Tampa and New Orleans! When I have a window seat, I love to keep an eye on the view. I saw some incredible cloud formations, got lots of good views of Mt. Rainier, and got a peak at Yosemite Valley on my final flight of the year.

Volunteering is something that I always feel like I should be doing more of, but finding projects that I really connect with is more challenging – many projects require consistent time commitments, or feature skills that aren’t necessarily in line with my strengths. And while I could probably find software development related projects to volunteer for, I’d rather do something less related to the day job, so it feels like a break.

Enter: Trail Maintenance!

Making the Face Cut

The year I hiked the PCT, there was an epic blowdown near Mammoth Lakes, CA – thousands of trees fell onto the PCT, and early season hikers had to consider detours or road walks to continue their hikes because the trail was completely blocked by trees. By the time I walked through the trail was nearly clear, thanks in large part to the volunteer trail crews who partner with the PCTA and National Forest Service to keep the PCT in the best possible condition. I got to thank a couple of trail crews in person in that section, and met several other volunteer crews along the trail; I also walked through a number of sections that really needed some love!

Walking through the Sierras, I became fascinated by the engineering aspects of trail construction, thinking about how much effort it took to build such elaborate trails through such rugged mountains, and inspired by the monument for a fallen worker on the climb up the south side of Forester Pass (the highest point on the PCT, at over 13,000 feet). For these reasons, volunteering for trail maintenance projects through organizations like the PCTA and WTA feels like a natural fit for me.

This past weekend, I worked on a 2-day project at White Pass in southern Washington (just north of the Goat Rocks Wilderness, one of my favorite stretches of trail!). The trail crew convened on Saturday morning at the forest service campground on the north side of highway 12, where we car-camped on Saturday evening.

A Brand New Check Step

We began the day with introductions, a safety briefing and tool demonstration, and an overview of our goals for the weekend. For this project we would be working close to the trailhead, not more than a mile up-trail, improving drainage and trail tread to prevent erosion and improve hiker and equestrian experience.

Over the course of the weekend, I learned to swing an axe properly, design a drainage dip, and install a check step. I got to scout the trail with Dana, our crew leader and the PCTA’s regional representative for Northern Oregon / Southern Washington, learning how to view the trail through the eyes of a trail builder rather than just a hiker. On Sunday, I got to help select a tree to fell for our check steps, learn how to use a cross-cut saw and make a face cut, explore strategies for dealing with a tree that gets hung up in the canopy instead of falling as expected (a useful lesson, but one that we would have rather not experienced!), and experience the joys of stripping cedar bark.

I also got to work and hang out with some really cool people – I talked with a retired nurse who volunteers regularly for the Washington Trails Association and on the Burke-Gilman bicycle trail (and learned that on week-long backcountry projects, you get to do cool things like build bridges – I love trail bridges!), swapped stories of elk encounters and weird trail food combinations with other long-distance hikers, and answered questions about thru-hiking the PCT for an enthusiastic audience.

Interested in volunteering for a trail maintenance project? It’s a great way to spend time on the trails, learn new things, and meet great people. Head over to the New Volunteer page on the PCTA site (or contact a trail organization near you) and check it out!

I finished my PCT thru-hike one year ago today. Since then, I’ve found a new job, (more or less) run a half-marathon, moved to Seattle, hiked Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim in the Grand Canyon, and day-hiked on the slopes of Mt Rainier. I’ve taken Chuck on two mini-PCT backpacking adventures – one in the Southern California desert of our old San Diego home, one in the magnificent Northern Cascades close to Seattle – to entice him into hiking the next long trail with me. The PCT has affected my everyday life in so many ways – it’s given me a willingness to take on more adventurous pursuits and confidence to attempt them, it’s introduced me to many trail friends whose adventures continue to inspire me and trail angels whose generosity is even more inspiring, and it’s given me a sense of place – a knowledge of the trail, of the geography and the landscape it passes, and of the state of mind of being on the trail. I retrace my journey in reverse every time I fly from Seattle to San Diego for work, watching out the window as the familiar mountains of Washington, Oregon, and California drift in and out of view, remembering the scenery and the people I hiked with in those places.

After the trail, I believe that there’s no better way to understand a place than to walk through it, and I’m looking forward to many more foot-powered, M&M-fueled journeys.

I haven’t let myself read any PCT Trail memoirs until I finished my end-of-trail blog post, and my to-read shelf is getting full, so it’s time to tell the end of the story, one year later:

The last 10 days of my hike, from Stevens Pass to Manning Park BC, were some of my favorite of the trail. I loved the mountainous landscapes of the Northern Cascades, with snowy peaks in every direction, glacial streams raging through the valleys, and fall colors covering the hillsides. Walking along those remote ridges, I came within a few yards of a golden eagle, and saw too many marmots and pikas to count. I spent the last zero of my hike in Stehekin, a tiny town only accessible by lake or trail but renowned for its incredible bakery, enjoying a perfect fall day before the final few days of the trail. The days were getting shorter and colder as I made my way to Canada, and threatening clouds would roll in over the mountains for a few hours almost every afternoon, but by then I knew that I would finish, and that I had been lucky to hike in a year with an extended summer – almost perfect weather for the whole five months of my trip.

A Mysterious Present…

The journal entry from my final day:

October 3, 2012
Mile 2668.8
Manning Park, B.C., Canada

I did it!

I can’t believe that my PCT thru-hike is over. I guess it will start to feel real tomorrow, when I’m on the bus to the city instead of sorting through a resupply box and planning my next water source and camping site.

It was cold last night, but my liner and sleeping bag mostly kept me warm (everything but my feet – I should have used one of those hand-warmer packs that i was carrying…or worn socks!) I got up early, and thanks to my sleeping-in-clothes strategy, was on the trail by 6:45. Th climb out of my forested valley was still in shadow, and it got colder and windier as I climbed higher – I saw icicles in a few of the streams along the trail, and my water tube, which was fine when I started out, actually froze while I was hiking! The climbs were a bit challenging, but nothing too bad, and I was having fun reaching the saddles & seeing how the passes developed – I really liked Woody Pass. I could see a whole ridge full of glacier-covered mountains, and wondered if they were all grey and craggy, or if they were vegetated like the one I was climbing and just obscured by the distance.

Time to Celebrate!

Before long I had started the 7-mile descent to the border, and except for taking my time on a few sketchy bits of trail, I flew downhill, singing and trying not to cry too much before I got there. Finally I could see the clear-cut marking the border that some section-hikers had told me about, and I I knew I was getting close.A few minutes later I could see the Manning Park Welcome sign in a clearing, and the, the Monument! It was amazing! It felt smaller and more intimate than I expected, and the monument was oriented perpendicular to the border, while I’d always pictured it facing south. I took my pictures; cried a bit; checked out the register – a bit of a disappointment because it only started yesterday – Log and Tank were the only entries, so I didn’t get to see what many of my friends had written; opened my present & note from Chuck (a Canadian whiskey sampler & note with a hand-drawn Canadian flag); and then took some more pictures and video.

I am a PCT thru-hiker!

I really am one of *those* people, who have completed the whole PCT in one year – amazing!

The 8.8 miles into Manning Park were tough, especially the first 4 1/2 miles, which were up & down, narrow, sketchily-maintained trail – not up to my PCT standards! The remaining bit was mostly flat & downhill, but my feet were entirely ready to be done. I finally reached Manning Park Lodge around 6:30 & am staying at the hostel. Dinner at the restaurant was a tasty Salmon sandwich, and I finished off my Canadian Whisky and PB Cups for dessert.

After catching up with other hikers at so many places along the way, it feels really strange to be “in town” without them. And even stranger to give my name as “Amanda” instead of “Lava Goat”!

It still hasn’t sunk in that I don’t have to walk tomorrow!

What I wrote: Register at the End of the Trail

Tagged: backpacking, pacific crest trail, PCT, thru-hike]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2013/10/03/pct-thru-hike-1-year-later/feed/8AmandaI hiked for five months to earn this picture!The trail in autumnMica LakeMy favorite fungi formation!View from StehekinWalking in the high countryThanks, trail builders!Daylight fading over the CascadesA Mysterious Present...Time to Celebrate!What I wrote: Register at the End of the Trail Walking through Washingtonhttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/09/24/walking-through-washington/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/09/24/walking-through-washington/#commentsMon, 24 Sep 2012 18:30:13 +0000http://aerialokapi.wordpress.com/?p=2085]]>I’m less than 200 miles from completing my PCT thru hike! I arrived at Stevens Pass yesterday, following the three toughest days of hiking in Washington so far: the terrain was steeper and rockier, the air oppressively smoky from forest fires to the east, and I had to navigate a “potentially hazardous ford” of a creek which was raging down a ravine with rocks and boulders making even getting to the water to cross it a challenge. After averaging 25 miles per day with relative ease for the first two sections in Washington, struggling for 20-22 miles per day the last few days was mentally tough, and has made these last two hundred miles seem much longer and harder in my head. I spent many hours working through finishing-date scenarios while walking: what if I get to Stehekin before the last shuttle on Friday, or after the post office closes for the weekend on Saturday, or…and it began to stress me out a lot! As amazing as it is that I can turn any patch of flat-enough ground into “home” for the evening, I am longing for the comforts of my real home, and my reunion with Chuck (and the cats!) even more as I finally get close to finishing the hike.
Once I stepped off the trail at Stevens Pass, all of the worries magically lessened. I met a few trail friends who are a day ahead, getting ready to start hiking again; got a burger and beer at the ski resort cafe – a welcome respite from my trail diet of chocolate bars, salty crackers, and instant potatoes; and got a ride to Baring, where trail angels the Dinsmores have provided me with a bed, shower, and laundry before I head out into the wilds for my final 10 days of hiking. Canda, here I come!

Tagged: pacific crest trail, Pct 2012]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/09/24/walking-through-washington/feed/6Amanda20120924-065301.jpg20120924-065236.jpg20120924-112913.jpg20120924-112941.jpg20120924-112949.jpgOregon Updatehttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/29/oregon-update/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/29/oregon-update/#respondWed, 29 Aug 2012 16:27:18 +0000http://aerialokapi.wordpress.com/?p=2077]]>After crossing the California/Oregon border two weeks ago, I’ve hiked about 300 miles, and have 150 left until I meet Chuck in Portland next week! I visited Crater Lake for the first time, enjoyed swimming in some of oregon’s fantastic lakes (warmer than the ones in the Sierras!), seen a herd of elk, and walked through fields of wildflowers and incredible volcanic landscapes. It’s hard to believe I only have about five weeks of hiking left!

Tagged: pacific crest trail, Pct 2012]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/29/oregon-update/feed/0Amanda20120829-092440.jpg20120829-092506.jpg20120829-092524.jpg20120829-092552.jpg20120829-092630.jpg20120829-092659.jpgA quick update from Etnahttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/09/a-quick-update-from-etna/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/09/a-quick-update-from-etna/#respondThu, 09 Aug 2012 18:50:16 +0000http://aerialokapi.wordpress.com/?p=2069]]>I’ve now hiked over 1600 miles on the PCT, and will be crossing the California-Oregon border in less than a week! I love California, but I’ll be so happy to hike out of here! The scenery for the last couple of weeks has been incredible – I’ve seen a geyser and boiling mud pots in Lassen National Park, admired the snowy peaks of Mt Shasta and the Trinity Alps, and seen my first bear – with two cubs! I got into Etna, CA yesterday afternoon and have enjoyed everything the town has to offer hikers: a trip to the brewpub, a milkshake at the drugstore soda counter, and pie for breakfast at the local diner.

Tagged: pacific crest trail, PCT]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/08/09/a-quick-update-from-etna/feed/0Amanda20120809-114755.jpg20120809-114840.jpg20120809-114822.jpg20120809-114850.jpg20120809-114908.jpg20120809-114926.jpg20120809-115002.jpgTahoe to Belden: approaching halfwayhttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/23/tahoe-to-belden-approaching-halfway/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/23/tahoe-to-belden-approaching-halfway/#respondMon, 23 Jul 2012 19:29:23 +0000http://aerialokapi.wordpress.com/?p=2060]]>Getting back on the trail after spending a weekend with Chuck at Lake Tahoe was hard – I really wanted to stay with him and return to the comforts of home (and the kitties!) in San Diego. But alas, the only way to justify the massive resupply trip to REI was to start hiking again, so I headed north on the morning of the 17th, knowing that Sierra City was only 2 days away, and my next visit with Chuck would be in Portland, OR in early September. I hiked about 18 miles the first day, and saw and chatted with lots of day-hikers and weekenders (i think i intimidated a couple who were out for a 15 mile weekend trip when I told them I was going “only” 38 miles in two days – oops!), but no other Pct hikers. I visited the Peter Grubb hut, built to shelter hikers and skiers from winter storms – it had the first two-story outhouse I’ve seen on the trail! I also impressed myself with my topo map reading skills – I found a perfect campsite, sheltered from the wind, in the exact spot that I had identified as a candidate from the contour pattern.
The next day was a quick twenty miles into the Red Moose Inn in Sierra City. On the descent into town I came across a bush of purple flowers that was full of dozens of orange butterflies – a beautiful sight! I enjoyed hiking through the Tahoe National Forest, which had lots of trail signs with mileage markers and an informational sign about the reservoir on the way into town. I met up with several other hikers, including GipC Girl and Action Pack, at the Red Moose, and being around them all again made me feel better about being back on the trail again, and a little less homesick.
I had a fabulous breakfast at the Red Moose the next morning, and set off to tackle the climb out of town under a beautifully overcast sky. The cool weather helped me power up the hill, where i passed the 1200 mile mark, and then I hiked with Action Pack for the rest of the day – chatting with her definitely helped the miles fly by. We hiked past Sierra Buttes, an impressive rock formation north of town; parts of the trail were a bit precarious on a rocky ledge, but it was a beautiful place to hike.
The next day was a tough one – I’d planned 27 miles and was actually hoping to do 29, but was really tired toward the end of the day and ended up camped with a few other hikers near the Fowler Peak trailhead after a 26 mile day. The day’s scenery was mostly pine forests and flowered hillsides, with a few expansive views of more pine-covered valleys. The trade-off for hiking among all of these lush plants is a much higher humidity level than I’ve previously hiked in, and the sticky heat is a bit tough to adjust to. I spent most of the afternoon listening to music, trying to crank out the miles and ignore how tired my feet were.
For some reason, the next day was much better. I got a decently early start and sped through the first few flat miles, walked over a fantastic bridge at the Feather River, and climbed for seven miles in the heat of the afternoon before finishing up with a few flat miles to my campsite – I walked for almost 28 miles that day, my longest day yet! I was pleased with how good I felt on the long uphill section, and eased some of my getting-to-Canada anxiety by giving myself permission to take a little more rest than I had planned along the way instead of pushing to finish by the (not really) magic date of October 1 no matter what mileage it takes to get there.
My long day left me with only twenty miles to go into the town of Belden – a short uphill followed by a long descent into town. I had great views of lakes and flower covered rides in the morning, then walked through more pine forests before emerging onto an exposed ridge with sandy switchbacks. The first few miles of the descent flew by, but the last six miles into town seemed to take forever, and my feet were very tired of the pounding descent. The poison oak that the trail into Belden is famous for had luckily been trimmed back to an easily-avoidable level, and just before I emerged for the final road walk I found some much-welcomed trail magic – an assortment of drinks had been left in a nest of ice on a trailside boulder; I picked up a cold can of guava nectar and gulped it down to energize me for the final mile. I’ll be back on the trail this afternoon after getting my fill of town food at Belden Town Resort and Caribou Crossroads diner, ad enjoying the hospitality of the Braatens, who host hikers here in town. The switchbacks out of town look intimidating, but I’m almost to the halfway point on the trail and am heading into Lassen National Park soon, so I’m excited about the week ahead!

Tagged: pacific crest trail, Pct 2012]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/23/tahoe-to-belden-approaching-halfway/feed/0Amanda20120723-122726.jpg20120723-122738.jpg20120723-122755.jpg20120723-122814.jpg20120723-122825.jpg20120723-122843.jpg20120723-122910.jpg20120723-122853.jpgI made it through The Sierras!https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/17/i-made-it-through-the-sierras/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/17/i-made-it-through-the-sierras/#commentsTue, 17 Jul 2012 14:40:25 +0000http://hoppyokapi.com/?p=2027]]>My high-mountain adventure lasted almost a month, from June 15, when I walked out of Kennedy Meadows and the landscape started transforming into granite hills and hidden alpine meadows, until July 14th, when I walked over Donner Pass (without being eaten!) and met Chuck for a weekend of resupply and relaxation on the shores of Lake Tahoe. 1160 miles down, 1500 to go! The Sierras deserve a much longer write-up, but I have to get back on trail about two hours, so here are a few highlights:

A surprise meeting of friends from San Diego on my descent from Mt Whitney

More waterfalls and pristine alpine lakes than I ever would have imagined

Camping above 10,000 feet, and waking up to a tent covered in ice

Seeing the dramatic changes in rock formations through King’s Canyon and Yosemite National Parks and the National Forests in the Sonora Pass area and north to Lake Tahoe

Many mountain wildflowers – from tiny little plants hugging the ground above 12,000 feet to meadows full of flowers taller than me! I even got to walk through a field of wild irises.

Tagged: pacific crest trail, Pct 2012]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/07/17/i-made-it-through-the-sierras/feed/1AmandaImageImageImageImageImageImageTehachapi to Kennedy Meadows: last days in the deserthttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/06/23/tehachapi-to-kennedy-meadows-last-days-in-the-desert/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/06/23/tehachapi-to-kennedy-meadows-last-days-in-the-desert/#commentsSat, 23 Jun 2012 19:42:09 +0000http://aerialokapi.wordpress.com/?p=2025]]>I really wasn’t looking forward to the seven day hike from Tehachapi to Kennedy Meadows: I thought it was all really hard desert hiking, and it was psyching me out, so i decided to get out of town and hit the trail as soon as possible instead if staying in town and getting more nervous about it.

I got a ride back to the trail from local trail angel Jo Walker on the afternoon of June 6th, and walked ten miles between the roads that lead to Tehachapi. Most of the hike was beautiful, around more wind farms and through cattle pastures. After a less beautiful two mile road walk, I found a mostly flat spot in a rocky wash about two miles from the freeway, and cowboy camped under the stars since it was too windy to set up a tent.
The next day started as so many do – with a big climb out of town into the mountains. Once I reached the top, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself in a pine forest for most of the day – so mush nicer than the seven days of exposed desert that I had feared. At much lunch spot that day I met Young Geezer, Caesar, Skeeter, and Platypus – except for Platypus, who was quite speedy, I would see the other hikers several times over then next week or so. I hiked about twenty miles that day, camping in a pine grove where I found a flat-enough spot around 7pm – my campsite criteria definitely become more lax the later in the evening I hike!

On June 8th I was reunited with Test, challenger, Green Machine, Skeeter and Caesar at the lunchtime water source (if there’s water an shade, you’ll find hikers there!), and Young Geezer came along just as I was leaving. There was moderate elevation gain that day, but I was feeling really sluggish and slow – the highlight was passing the 600 mile marker along the way; Test and I camped at Landers Campground with Mellow Yellow and some of the other hikers we’d met a few days before, under the bridge near the aqueduct. Despite guidebook warnings about noisy off-roaders using the campground, we had it almost to ourselves, and slept peacefully.

The following day was the quintessential Mohave hiking day: the only on-trail water sources were caches maintained by a trail angel named Mary, ad if those were empty we’d have to hike several miles off the trail for water, so my pack was heavy with five or six liters of water heading out of the water sources that day. I was happy to see that the first cache had water, but since there was no shade I filled up and headed out quickly, narrowly missing Mary as she arrived to replenish the cache a few minutes after I left. The afternoon’s hike was crazy-hard: uphill, hot, exposed, sandy trail with mogul ski course-like bumps, and strong side and head-winds that threatened to blow me over, and a heavy pack because I wasn’t sure if the next cache would have water. Caesar and Skeeter passed me in the afternoon, and we leapfrogged a bit as we took turns resting in the shade of Joshua trees and boulders. We all ended up camping at the second water cache at Bird Spring with Test, Mellow Yellow and Gut Feeling, happy to find it full of water. That was a 22-mile day for me, and I was feeling energized by my ability to face the harsh desert conditions and fight through them.
The next day featured a long raid wall and only a little shade, and most of the water sources were either off-trail, contaminated with cow poop, or both, so I was carrying a heavy pack again, and powered through twenty miles by 3pm, getting to Walker Pass in the early afternoon. There I found trail magic hosted by Okie Girl, Jackalope, and Jackalope’s four year old son Julian Walker, named for the pct town of Julian and Walker Pass. Instead of hiking on that evening, I stayed to enjoy the company (and wonderful food) at the trail magic tent – what a welcome break in the middle of a tough seven day stretch of hiking!

The next day I headed up out of walker pass around nine am, after enjoying a delicious egg and sausage breakfast thanks to okie girl and Jackalope. Julian tried to tell me that it was too hot too hike, since most of the other hikers were using that as an excuse to stay until evening, but I actually enjoyed the climb out of walker pass in the morning sunshine. The afternoon was an entirely different story: I stopped for about an hour around four pm, started hiking again for ten minutes, then decided it was still too hot and found another shady spot to sit in until 6pm, when it was finally a bit cooler. I made seventeen miles that day, and camped near the first trail crossing of Spanish Needle creek, which was barely flowing buy ha a pool deep enough for me to get a couple liters of water from.

The next morning I was facing a four mile climb, so I woke up early and kept moving until the sun came over the ridge and my shade disappeared – j made it almost all the way uphill before that happened, so I was pretty happy with my morning’s hike! I descended from that ridge, then took a two-hour lunch break in the shade of a pine tree after meeting section hikers (and recent MIT grads) Isaac and Tzipporah at a stream around noon, then started a seven mile climb, which took me until about five pm because I needed so many shade breaks – it was definitely hot! I promised myself I could camp in the first campsite I came to after 7pm, and found a flat spot in the crook of the trail that was just big enough for one person to cowboy camp. I was a little worried about bears and other critters, but so tired that I didn’t care too much!

The next morning was an exciting one – I was only twelve miles out from Kennedy Meadows, my next “town” stop. I hurried though the morning, passing by the Kern River and through the last if the dry desert landscape, and made it there around noon. I found GipC girl and Hamburger and the store, and hung out with them until they left that afternoon, at which point I pitched my tent, collected my resupply boxes, and settled in for a relaxing zero day before heading off into the mountains.

Tagged: pacific crest trail, Pct 2012]]>https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/06/23/tehachapi-to-kennedy-meadows-last-days-in-the-desert/feed/1Amanda20120623-124034.jpg20120623-124057.jpg20120623-124111.jpg20120623-124121.jpg20120623-124138.jpg20120623-124158.jpgCasa de Luna, Hikertown, and Tehachapi: The Desert Continueshttps://hoppyokapi.com/2012/06/14/casa-de-luna-hikertown-and-tehachapi-the-desert-continues/
https://hoppyokapi.com/2012/06/14/casa-de-luna-hikertown-and-tehachapi-the-desert-continues/#respondThu, 14 Jun 2012 20:40:37 +0000http://hoppyokapi.com/?p=2015]]>Thursday, May 31: I was on the trail by 6:25 with one goal in mind: The Andersons’ Casa de Luna, the next trail angel stop on the PCT. I knocked out the first four miles of the day, a 2000-foot climb, fairly quickly, stopping to watch the ravens soaring on the thermals. There was a small water cache under a tree before the next climb, so I stopped there to enjoy half an hour in the shade – it was already quite hot by 10am! I reached the next water cache around 1:15, but it was empty; luckily there was a small stream still running nearby, so I was able to get water there, and relax in a lawn chair in the shade for another two hours before braving the heat for the final seven miles into Casa de Luna – the shadows were lengthening, but the temperature didn’t seem to be getting any cooler. I passed a leaderboard for a 50-mile trail run that apparently takes place on the PCT in that section, and thought about how crazy it would be to actually run 50 miles there, when walking twenty that day was quite enough for me! I got to Casa de Luna around 6:30 in the evening, found a spot in the maze of manzanita trees to set up my tent, and enjoyed a delicious dinner of taco salad – the Andersons’ signature hiker dinner. I took a very restful zero the next day, lounging in the shade in the front yard and doing basically nothing.

I set out again on June 2, around 9:15 am – after breakfast, since there was no way I was going to pass up the chance for pancakes and coffee! The first eight miles of the day flew by, as I avoided stopping for breaks because the flies would swarm any time I stopped. I did take a two hour break at the next (nearly empty, again) water cache with Lunchbox (who had skipped the Andersons to power on to Tehachapi) and the Canadians. We all camped for the day near mile 493, under some pine trees close to one of the desert water sources – a concrete guzzler that was so full of debris that we had to strain the water before filling our bottles. The water tasted more like pine needle tea than water – not all that refreshing, but we take what we can get.

June 3 was a 24-mile day, with the goal of getting to Hikertown near Lancaster, CA. I was looking forward to passing the 500-mile mark that day, but was not looking forward to anything else about another long, hot day in the desert. I started out the day without my sunglasses, as I couldn’t remember where I’d stashed them the night before (in the compartment where my sleeping bag goes – a very odd choice), and then I tripped over a rock a few miles into the hike and landed on my face, coming away with a swollen lip, bloody nose, and black eye. Passing 500 miles was definitely the highlight of the day – there were three separate markers, and at the last one we took pictures, drank some rum that Lunchbox had brought for the occasion, and played “I will Walk 500 miles” to celebrate. After that it was more slogging along, trying to tolerate the flies during shade breaks, and trying to make the miles for the day. We chatted with some Sierra Club dayhikers at a campground about five miles from Hikertown, and then wound our way up and down an endless set of low ridges before finally finishing for the day around 6:30. Hikertown is kind of like a Hollywood set version of an Old West town, and Test and I shared one of the train cars-turned-cabins whose facade was decorated as the City Hall. We also indulged in dinner there, and for $10 each had a salad, pot roast, garlic bread, corn on the cob and strawberry shortcake – so much tastier than eating the food we packed in, even though it meant we’d be carrying more food than we needed the rest of the way to Tehachapi.

I was sooooo tired from the 24 miles into Hikertown, but the next day was a long walk along the Los Angeles aqueduct, a section notorious on the PCT for its lack of shade, hot temperature, and high wind. To avoid the heat as much as possible, Test, Lunchbox and I hiked out at 4:30 in the morning – surprisingly, waking up at 3:30 wasn’t as painful as I expected, and it was kind of fun to be hiking before sunrise. The uncovered section of the aqueduct was quite pretty to hike beside, but after a few miles we were just walking on a sandy road along a concrete cover, through an under-construction wind farm, moving back and forth from the road to the concrete as we got tired of one surface or the other. We did end up hiking 17 miles by noon that day, and then spent the next five hours resting under a bridge with about fifteen other hikers. Every half hour or so a group of hikers would have to move from one side of the group to the other, chasing the shade as the sun moved across the sky. Twice I was run over by some tumbleweed, as the wind picked up and blew debris under the bridge. We set off again around 5pm, and by then the wind had picked up considerably – we hiked about 3 miles in the first hour with a tailwind, but then it took about two hours to make the next three to the Taylorhorse Canyon campground. At one point my sunglasses were blown off of my head, and I sat down to avoid the wind after chasing them down, only to realize that the wind was just blowing up dirt which then covered my face, even with my back turned – not actually relaxing at all. I set up my tent at the campground because there were a few raindrops and some threatening clouds, but the strong winds blew away the weather – and almost blew away my tent! By morning only one guy-line was still staked to the ground, and I was just glad that my tent stakes hadn’t blown away.

Having a collapsed tent was good motivation for an early start the next morning – it’s no fun to linger in your tent when it’s collapsed around you! I was awake around 5:30 and on the trail by six, ready for the push into Tehachapi. The threatening clouds had given way to a cool but breezy morning, and I actually really enjoyed the hike into Tehachapi – there were more wind farms, burned out trees, and bright blue skies with fluffy white clouds. There was a surprise water cache about 10 miles before town, where I stopped to relax with Drop Zone, BAM and Shivers, and then I cruised into town around 2pm and set up base camp at the Best Western – glad to have a shower and a clean place to relax out of the wind.